Future Schools Funding

There has been lots of news in the national and local media about the future of schools funding. The Government’s decision to protect school funding only in flat cash terms per pupil means that schools throughout the country are facing, according to the National Audit Office, a real term cut of £3 billion by 2020.

“Flat cash funding” means that all schools get the same amount of money as they did two years’ ago. Thus, our income has stayed the same whilst our costs have risen sharply. Consequently, we have less money to spend on each pupil in our school.

We have already had to make incredibly difficult decisions about where to make these savings, with many more savings to find. The future may include: reducing staff, increased class sizes, less support for vulnerable youngsters, less support for SEND, charging parents/carers for more activities.

We already have the situation that our students suffer from being in a rural community. Deprivation here is more than just income; it is access to jobs, no – or very little – public transport, limited access to the arts and little or no access to youth services – things taken for granted in urban areas, even towns elsewhere in Cornwall.

Unfortunately the Chancellor has failed to recognise the very real challenges facing schools in the recent Autumn Budget. The proposed National Funding Formula will make matters worse as Sir Jim’s will see its income fall. It is against this background that schools across the country have been appealing for help from Members of Parliament and parents/carers.